Page 17 of You, As You Are

“What point is there in worrying when it will only make things worse?” he said. “I’ve had worse incidents with animals, anyway.”

“Really? What happened?”

“It was a long time ago.”

“But you remember it?”

His jaw worked. “How’re your feet?”

Iain changed the subject again, so Maisie indulged his diversion. They might never see each other again after this romp along the coastal path, so she didn’t need to uncover the ins and outs of his life. Surface level transactions only.

“I’d kill for a foot rub. My back would be nice, too.” Maisie didn’t mean for the moan that unbiddenly came from her lips as she stretched her spine to sound so sexual. She caught Iain looking from the corner of his eye, and her neck rose up with heat.

No,no.That kind of attention from him wasn’t what she needed right now.

She wouldn’t do herself a disservice and assume that she wasn’t Iain’s type. But he was … well …him.She had eyes; she wasn’t oblivious. Iain either knew that he was handsome but didn’t care, ordidn’tknow the effect that his gruff voice, frown– and for god’s sake, even the way that he held himself – in combination unfairly tickled her inside.

Maisie turned her face, partly so the wind kept her flyaway hairs away from her mouth, but mostly to hide her reddened cheeks, then chomped down on the pastry for something else to silently moan over instead ofhim.

Iain’s inconsequential confession that he played local rugby made complete sense. His tall build was clearly muscular, but a stockier sort, as if he worked out but didn’t say no to a pint and chips on a Friday night.

Speaking of, she needed something that would kill this awkwardness.

“Nainwent out to celebrate someone’s birthday last night. She said they were in her hiking group, so were you there?” Because if he had been, then he could’ve already known who she was before he’d saved her from breaking open her skull on the paving. He’d have known beforehand about the group apparently wanting her to come on this walk.

“No,” Iain answered, “I was with Ted at home.”

So hehadn’tbeen a part of Vera’s plan for her to make friends, at least not knowingly. He’d kept her company for three hours now without complaint, so that plan was in motion regardless.

Within a few more short strides that consisted of a lot of leaning back to counteract the decline, Maisie finished up the pastry.

And with one gust of wind, the wrapper flew right out of her hand.

“Oh—shit.”

The plastic flew down the hill in a rolling scrunch.

“Shit—shit.”

Maisie picked up the pace of her aching feet.

Was she doing this? Yes, she was.

God,she wasnota runner. Downhill. In hiking boots. With blistering heels.

“Maisie, leave it!” Iain’s voice carried on the wind, batting her spine from behind her. “Don’t run?—”

“I can’t litter,” she yelled in return. “It kills the wildlife.”

“There’s not any wildlife here.” Iain’s exasperated tone disappeared on the wind. “You’ll fall! Leave it.”

You’ll fall. You’ll fall. You’ll fall.

The funny thing about jogging down a cliffside that keeps on getting steeper and steeper, was that once you began, it was really bloody hard to stop. Maisie didn’t have a choice anymore. She was going to end her short life by being one with the ground, there was no doubt about that, but at least she could wipe clean her conscience in the process.

“This. Is. Why. I. Don’t. Run.” Her breasts all but smacking her chin made her punctuate every word.

Ted pounded the earth right alongside her.

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